Posts with tag: private rental sector

Tenants Face a Dwindling Supply of Housing, Reports the RLA

Published On: August 14, 2017 at 9:08 am

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Tenants Face a Dwindling Supply of Housing, Reports the RLA

Tenants Face a Dwindling Supply of Housing, Reports the RLA

Private tenants are set to face a dwindling supply of rental housing, as demand increases, according to the latest quarterly report from the Residential Landlords Association (RLA).

The survey of almost 3,000 landlords found that 22% plan to sell at least one of their rental properties over the next year, while just 18% plan to buy additional properties to let.

The new data shows that 33% of landlords have experienced an increase in demand for homes to rent over the past three years.

Faced by an imbalance of supply and demand of rental housing, 47% of landlords said that they expected to increase rent prices over the next year. The main reason why rents might increase was the change to mortgage interest tax relief, which will see landlords taxed on their turnover rather than profit – unlike all other businesses – by 35%.

The Chairman of the RLA, Alan Ward, comments on the findings: “As demand continues to increase for homes to rent, punitive tax changes are discouraging investment by the majority of good landlords who want to provide accommodation.

“Whilst efforts by the Government to support institutional investment in the sector are welcome, this will remain a drop in the ocean.”

He urges: “To meet demand, we need pro-growth taxation that actively supports and encourages the majority of landlords, who are individuals providing good housing, to invest in the new homes to rent we so desperately need.”

Landlords, are you planning to put your rents up or sell your properties in the near future?

We encourage all those that let properties to private tenants to consider how they will be affected by your actions – always remember to consider how their finances and lives will change if you put rents up or sell the property they’re living in.

We’d also like to highlight recent research that found that a third of rental homes fail to meet basic health and safety standards; it is imperative that you protect your tenants’ health.

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Landlords Invited to Take Part in RLA Survey

Published On: August 7, 2017 at 9:24 am

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Why tackling the construction skills shortage is only the first step
Landlords Invited to Take Part in RLA Survey

Landlords Invited to Take Part in RLA Survey

Private landlords are being invited to take part in the latest quarterly RLA survey (the Residential Landlords Association), which aims to help the organisation improve conditions in the private rental sector.

Part of the RLA’s strategy to make renting better is to conduct a regular review of the private rental sector, including quarterly surveys to assess the issues affecting landlords, tenants and the overall market.

The short RLA survey will take around ten minutes to complete, and includes questions on issues relating to licensing, tenancy deposits, letting agent fees and more.

The findings will help the RLA better understand the issues affecting private landlords right now, as well as informing its future policy work. The organisation is calling for honest and precise answers to the questions, as these responses will help it campaign better on your behalf.

Involvement in the research is completely voluntary, anonymous and participants are free to withdraw at any point. All information will be kept confidential. Only anonymous aggregated data will be presented in the report.

You have until 5pm on Friday 11th August to take the survey, which can be accessed here: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/9TWSTPW

If there is a particular question that you do not want to (or cannot) answer, then you can just continue onto the next question.

If you would like more information on the RLA survey, you can contact its Research and Information Officer, Tom Simcock, at: research@rla.org.uk

Landlords are also being called upon by a production company working with BBC One to get involved in its hit TV show The Week the Landlords Moved In. Get more information and the contact details of whom you need to get in touch with, along with more details of the show, by reading our article here: /landlords-bbc-one-needs-join-show/

By joining these projects, you could help to improve the state of the private rental sector.

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UK rental prices rise in July

Published On: August 7, 2017 at 8:54 am

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The latest HomeLet Rental Index has revealed that UK rental prices returned to growth in July, for the first time in three months.

Now, the average monthly cost of a new tenancy stands at £925 per calendar month, up 1.1% from the £916pcm in the same month of last year.

Rising Rents

This rise was the first time April that the HomeLet rental index revealed a rise in rental prices, after falls of 0.3% and 0.2% seen in May and June respectively.

However, inflation in the private rental sector is still lagging the general rate of inflation, which was 2.7% in June.

In addition, the Index reveals that rents increased in 9 of the 12 regions of the UK covered by the research. Northern Ireland saw the largest rises, with an increase of 5.7% year-on-year. This was followed by Scotland, where rents rose by 3.6%.

On the other hand, London continues to lag Britain as a whole, with rents sliding by 0.6% in July, in comparison to 2016. The average monthly rent in the capital now stands at £1,564pcm.

The South East and North East also saw declines of 0.9% and 1.7% respectively.

Rental figures from the July 2017 HomeLet Rental Index were:

Region Average rent in July 2017 Average rent in June 2017 Average rent in July 2016 Monthly variation Annual variation
Northern Ireland £625 £610 £589 2.4% 5.7%
Scotland £630 £636 £607 -1.0% 3.6%
East Midlands £620 £614 £600 1.0% 3.2%
West Midlands £680 £662 £663 2.7% 2.4%
South West £823 £800 £803 2.9% 2.4%
North West £698 £688 £682 1.4% 2.3%
East of England £919 £906 £904 1.5% 1.6%
Wales £613 £608 £605 0.8% 1.3%
Yorkshire & Humberside £625 £615 £618 1.6% 1.1%
Greater London £1,564 £1,524 £1,573 2.6% -0.6%
South East £1,025 £1,015 £1,033 0.9% -0.9%
North East £526 £525 £535 0.3% -1.7%
UK £925 £908 £915 1.9% 1.1%
UK excluding Greater London £769 £757 £757 1.5% 1.6%
UK rental prices rise in July

UK rental prices rise in July


Summer Rises

Martin Totty, Chief Executive of Barbon Insurance, parent company of HomeLet, noted: ‘It’s often been the case in recent times that rents have strengthened over the summer period. It’s a time when renters contemplate moving, demand increases, tenancy terms are set, and when the anniversary of the tenancy often occurs. This year, that ‘seasonal’ factor brings some relief for landlords, who’ve endured a gradual erosion in rent prices over many months.’

‘At the same stage last year, the South East was the main driver of UK average rents. This time around it’s regions throughout the country leading the strengthening in rents. If we exclude the London region, the average UK rent for a private rental property has hit a new high of £769 a month, up 1.6% on this time last year.’

Continuing, Mr Totty said: ‘Whether the market has now found some equilibrium remains to be seen, but landlords at least will be grateful for even some short respite. Predicting where the market heads from here is very difficult given the number of competing forces impacting the sector, either already being felt or still being contemplated.’

‘We know housing stock for sale is in short supply and the Bank of England has expressed concerns about the ‘credit overhang’ and lenders’ resilience should economic activity start to slow. At the very least, these factors should not be unhelpful to the rental sector in the immediate future, encouraging landlords to stick with property owning as an asset class, with potential still to provide relatively attractive returns compared with alternative investment choices,’ he concluded.[1]

[1] https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2017/8/rents-bounce-back-in-july-but-london-weak–homelet

 

 

Nearly 81,000 Build to Rent units planned or completed in England

Published On: August 4, 2017 at 12:02 pm

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Fresh Government figures show that there are 80,855 Build To Rent properties that have either been completed or are planned.

Data shows that investment in this region of the private rental sector could rise to £70bn, which could help to create 15,000 homes to rent each year until the year 2022.

In addition, it has the potential to reach a total of at least 240,000 homes built for the purpose of privately renting by 2030.

‘Unlocking’

These figures were revealed during the announcement of a £65m boost from the Government to ‘help unlock’ more than 7,600 homes in Wembley. At least 6,800 of these properties will be available to rent.

The Build to Rent sector has also received the backing of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and the British Property Federation.

A joint statement said proposals under consideration with the Government include altering planning rules so councils must initiate greater forward planning of rental needs.

There are also proposals to introduce tenancies of three years or more, with these seen as more family-friendly than the more traditional six months tenancy often seen in buy-to-let.

Nearly 81,000 Build to Rent units planned or completed in England

Nearly 81,000 Build to Rent units planned or completed in England

Longer Tenancies

The British Property Federation says that 35,000 tenants have been offered tenancies of three years or more in recent years, ever since a greater emphasis was put on longer tenancies.

Chief Executive of the BPF Melanie Leech, said: ‘We fully support the introduction of affordable private rent, and the inclusion of build to rent and affordable private rent within the National Planning and Policy Framework and Planning Practice Guidance – a multi-tenure approach where all housing sectors receive the right policy support is critical to fixing the UK’s broken housing market.’[1]

Head of UK external affairs Geoff White also said: ‘The government’s proposals to boost supply across all tenures is a welcome acknowledgement of the extent of the housing challenges and the scale of the response required.’[1]

Housing and Planning Minister Alok Sharma observed: ‘Whether renting or owning all families should have the security they need to be able to plan for the future. That’s why as part of our plan to fix the broken housing market we’ve been taking action to create a bigger and better private rental market, supporting new Build To Rent developments so that tenants can have greater choice.’[1]

[1] https://www.lettingagenttoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2017/8/almost-81-000-build-to-rent-units-in-england-completed-or-planned

 

Landlords, BBC One Needs You to Join Show!

Published On: August 2, 2017 at 8:07 am

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Landlords, BBC One Needs You to Join Show!

Landlords, BBC One Needs You to Join Show!

We’re sure that many of you will have seen or at least heard of the BBC’s popular The Week the Landlords Moved In, a programme that shows what happens when landlords step into their tenants’ shoes. Now, you’re being given the opportunity to get involved!

Boundless Productions, which makes the hit show for BBC One, is looking for successful landlords to feature in the documentary series.

The life-swap style series, which first aired on BBC One on Wednesday 28th June 2017 at 9pm, challenges successful landlords to move into their tenants’ properties for one week.

In a time when the country’s private rental sector is expanding rapidly, the show is an opportunity to explore and reflect on how housing is changing, and what benefits and challenges come with that – for both landlords and their tenants.

If you’re a successful landlord, you can get involved and feature on the programme yourself! To find out more and get more information, contact Sally from Boundless Productions at: sally.ainsworth@boundlessproductions.tv or call: 0207 691 6202.

To get a taster of what you may be in for, catch up with the current episodes on the BBC iPlayer here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episodes/b08wzwhq

In the first episode, father and son landlords were surprised to find the tenant hadn’t informed them of mould and broken appliances in the property. After a week of living in a freezing flat, they also discovered that the heating bills were too expensive for the tenant to afford, causing the mould to grow. In a positive ending, the landlords renovated the flat and offered to help the tenant pay her heating bills in the future.

The second airing uncovered a surprise for the tenant, who found that he had been paying his neighbour’s bills for several years. The landlord made sure to resolve the issue and offered his tenant £100 as a gesture of goodwill until the problem was sorted.

The Association of Independent Inventory Clerks has said that the programme is serving as a real eye-opener for the industry, highlighting the lack of communication between landlords, their management companies and tenants.

Do you fancy swapping lives with your tenants? Get involved and join the winning show!

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Nearly one in five MPs are landlords

Published On: July 24, 2017 at 11:39 am

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Interesting new research has revealed that nearly one-fifth of MPs are landlords.

Some of the 123 MPs that have invested in property include chancellor Philip Hammond, Boris Johnson, Emily Thornberry and Speaker of the House of Commons, John Bercow.

MP Landlords

The research was conducted by Channel 4’s FactCheck, with the issue of landlord MPs coming to prominence again in the wake of the Grenfall Tower tragedy.

Some critics suggest that those who have a financial stake in the private rental sector could have a conflict of interest when it comes to making important decisions.

During the last Parliament, a law that would require private landlords to make their properties, ‘fit for human habitation’ was rejected by 312 votes to 219. However, it transpired that 72 of the MPs that voted against the Private Members Bill were landlords themselves.

Laura Pidcok MP told the press that, in her opinion, ‘anyone who is a landlord should not be able to vote on legislation affecting landlords,’ as, ‘it is a complete conflict of interest.’[1]

‘The people of Grenfall Tower have had their concerns repeatedly ignored and it is part of our long history as working class people to have our concerns ignored,’ she added.[1]

view of the city life with the big ben as background

Nearly one in five landlords are MPs

Conflicts

A FactCheck statement said: ‘Clearly, there is the potential for a conflict of interests. MP landlords can vote on housing legislation, speak in debates and hold ministerial positions, so long as they declare their interests. But are MPs actually swayed by their financial affairs in any sizeable numbers? Putting figures to this is incredibly hard.’[3]

[1] https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2017/7/almost-a-fifth-of-mps-are-landlords